Do you think this had a major
effect on your work since your
photos explore life and death
and aging, the reality of our
existence on this planet?
I think a psychiatrist would prob-
ably find parallels. It’s not something
that I think about a lot or lament in
any great way because in those days
if I asked my mother about him, she
would never, ever badmouth him.
So I was never twisted up too much
about it. She would say, “Well, honey,
he loved you dearly. He just had to
leave.” It was one of those Southern
gothic stories.
A few years ago, I went up to Alaska
on a job and visited where my dad was
buried. I found that fascinating. But
my history is here in Texas. I just hap-
pen to have been born in Wisconsin.
I’ve been back once to give a keynote
talk at a photo festival in Madison and
loved it. There’s nothing not to love
about it.
But the thing about east Texas...it’s
surreal: It’s full of Cajuns, rednecks,
white Anglo-Saxon Protestants, Mexi-
can mythology, black folktales, Viet-
namese industry. You have all this stuff
in a rural culture with all the ensuing
folklore, legends, accents and music.
I’ve tried to wrap that all together and
look at this place with brand-new eyes.Did your mother encourage
your photographic pursuits?
My mother was a photographer ofchildren and had a professional studio.
So I grew up around photography. But
I didn’t pay too much attention.
When I did get interested, she
encouraged me: “Well, you have a
good eye, you have a nice sense of
light. Take more photographs.”
That propelled me. But the big
thing for me happened after about a
decade of working as a portrait pho-
tographer and trying to make my own
kind of pictures: I went to a lecture by
Texas playwright Horton Foote at the
Galveston opera house during a film
festival. It was an electrifying experi-
ence. (My wife, Pat, was a huge fan
as well.)
The lecture was a panel discussion.
But when it was finally Horton’s time“Evermore,” 201616 | Digital Photo Pro digitalphotopro.com